PREDIS, Ambrogio de
(b. ca. 1455, Milano, d. after 1508)

Maximilian I

1502
Oil on oak panel, 44 x 30 cm
Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna

Ambrogio de Predis was an active court artist in Milan, who was deemed a member of the ruling household. From 1493 he was involved in making a series of portraits of various members of the Sforza and Habsburg courts intended to demonstrate their close ties. The present official portrait of the emperor, a rare signed and dated painting by the artist, belongs to this series.

The emperor is depicted in strict profile but with his torso slightly turned. He wears the collar of the Order of the Golden Fleece.